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Friday, June 8, 2012

Sepia Saturday: One lump or two

Sepia Saturday challenges
bloggers to share family history through old photographs.

This week’s Sepia Saturday photo prompt features one woman serving coffee from a silver coffee
pot, presumably part of a complete silver coffee and tea service. Could anything be more luxurious?It surely beats Mr. Coffee with its glass pot
and plastic lid.

My great-aunt Violetta Davis Ryan always kept a hot pot
of coffee.She could drink coffee many
times a day.I reckon so, as weak as she
made it.When my cousin Bobbie
introduced her boyfriend (now husband) to our great-aunt, Violetta pointed to
her coffee cup and asked, “Would you care for some?”Jimmy answered, “No thanks, I don’t drink hot
tea.” Since then, we all refer to weak coffee as “Violetta
coffee.”

Anyone who owned two silver coffee and tea services should
have made better coffee, don’t you think?My
sister has them now.Unlike Violetta, my
sister Mary Jollette makes delicious coffee, but she’s never served it in
silver.The one set that belonged to
Violetta is called Remembrance by Rogers Brothers.The tray, however, is Victorian by Wilcox
International.

This set includes the coffee pot, tea pot, creamer,
sugar, and waste bowl.The waste bowl
is where one empties cold tea or coffee before pouring another cup. "Waste bowl" -- wuddayaknow -- and all this time I thought it was a bowl for lemons or sugar cubes.

Her other set is just mix and match although the pieces
look nice grouped together.The water
pitcher is by William Rogers.The sugar
and creamer are simply labeled “warranted triple plate,” which was a process of applying a thin layer of silver over a base metal. The tray is American Rose by Wilcox International.

Isn't the design of the handles and sugar topper lovely?

My silver coffee and tea service belonged to our
great-aunt on our father’s side, Helen Killeen Parker.I have written about this set previously, so
if you want to read about it, click HERE.It is called Shell & Gadroon by Gorham. But alas, no waste bowl! Wherever shall I toss my cold coffee?

I have one other coffee and tea set, but it’s not
silver.This set is Japanese blue
lusterware which was among the wedding gifts of our great-aunt Velma Davis Woodring who married in 1927.It is pottery
or porcelain with a metallic glaze that creates the iridescence.It is stunning in person, such a beautiful
blue with cups lined in a goldy-peachy-orangey hue.

Lusterware was popular from the 1920s-40s.It went through a collecting craze in the
1980s but fell out of favor as soon as the Internet made people aware of how readily
available it is.

Do you see the Lusterware set on the front table?

It seems many of Velma’s Lusterware pieces were broken over the years.She obviously had many more cups than what is left judging by this photo of her wedding gifts.

I’m ashamed that these beautiful coffee and tea sets are
just sitting around collecting dust as decorations. They
need to be put to their proper use, and I vow to do just that one of these days.

Take a coffee break and head on over to Sepia Saturday where you're sure to find many blogposts that are your cup of
tea.

I can't imagine that anyone these days uses their silver service. Everything has become so casual. And who has time to polish all that silver?I love the Japanese set. It's so art deco-ish. Too bad it's not as valuable as it looks.Nancy

Wendy, you are so funny. I'd forgotten about Mr. Coffee. You guys have beautiful pieces, and I was thinking the same thing ... we should use our silver coffee pots once in awhile! Loved the story about your aunties weak coffee. When I first met Cary, he served Violetta coffee at work; and I was used to fresh ground French Roast each morning. He had to change his ways.

What a great collection. The other day our Sepia Saturday friend Mike Brubaker called in for tea along with his wife - they were holidaying in England. I had bought a cake to serve to them but as I was preparing things I suddenly realised we didn't have a tea pot! I felt a real sense of shame : an Englishman who makes tea by dropping a bag into a mug. I will buy a teapot soon, but I fear it will not be as beautiful as the ones you feature.

Every time I go into an antique shop or consignment shop I see several tea sets. Everyone seems to be getting rid of theirs. Now I always thought I would love to have one but the silver ones are too pricy for me and I have more stuff now that we can dust. They are beautiful however and although we got several silver items 52 years ago no tea set. I have the one pewter pot and I cannot keep that shinny.QMM

I think my favorite piece was the water pitcher, especially for the details around its beak. My mom had some Lusterware, porcelain with that metallic finish, kinda ocrish color. But not a complete set, just odds and ends. I didn't keep those. Silver is a lot of care and prefer to keep it only for display. Beverages don't taste the same. Porcelain is preferable. And I won't discuss weak coffee as it might make my stomach turn.Enjoy your sets, whether for display or service. Just don't hide them!!:)~ HUGZ

That lusterware is definitely a 1920s thing. My grandmother got a similar set as s wedding gift in 1925. I have it now - we used it for years - and our son will inherit it as he remembers tea with his great-grandma.

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About Me

My name is Wendy. About twenty years ago, I helped my mother research the Jolletts. Since retiring from teaching, I have expanded my research which I share here. When I’m not looking for my own family, I index for FamilySearch and the Greene County Historical Society.
Welcome to Jollett Etc. Please leave a comment to let me know you were here. If you have more information or believe we are related, EMAIL ME at wendymath at cox dot net